Open AccessEmpirical research on ethics in accounting – a systematic literature review
Author(s) -
Anna Kamińska-Stańczak,
Sylwia Silska-Gembka
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
zeszyty teoretyczne rachunkowości
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2391-677X
pISSN - 1641-4381
DOI - 10.5604/01.3001.0015.2348
Subject(s) - originality , variety (cybernetics) , scope (computer science) , empirical research , systematic review , identification (biology) , engineering ethics , accounting research , management science , accounting , sociology , psychology , social science , qualitative research , political science , computer science , business , medline , engineering , epistemology , philosophy , botany , artificial intelligence , law , biology , programming language
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to summarize and evaluate previous research of Polish authors in the field of accounting ethics; identify the main trends in empirical research and organize the research findings; establish and assess the scope of reporting for individual elements of the research process; identify the research gaps that inspire further research.Methodology/approach: A systematic literature review was conducted, including bibliometric analysis and content analysis of 35 publications.Findings: Ethics in accounting as a research area is currently only at the development stage. At the same time, a variety of research interests is noticeable, the most common of which is to identify the motives and causes of unethical behavior. All studies except one were based on non-random sampling. The vast majority of the research was questionnaire; in half of the cases, the research group consisted of students. Recommendations were made regarding the methodological rigor of further research. The methodological shortcomings make it im-possible to replicate the research conducted so far. Thanks to the identification of research gaps, directions for further scientific research were determined.Research limitations/implications: The review was limited to scientific journals only due to the necessity to standardize the sources of publication of research results.Originality/value: Conclusions from the review may inspire others to undertake research in previously unexplored areas. It may also be a guide to ensure the best possible quality.